Jackson Charged in July 15 Arrest

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office has formally charged
Quinton
“Rampage” Jackson(Pictures) with two felony and four
misdemeanor counts stemming from his July 15 arrest in Costa Mesa,
Calif.

Jackson, who sent authorities on a vehicular chase through the
streets and sidewalks of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach, was charged
with “one felony count of evading while driving recklessly, one
felony count of evading a peace officer and driving against
traffic, three misdemeanor counts of hit and run with property
damage, and one misdemeanor count of reckless driving.”

If convicted, Jackson faces a maximum sentence of three years in
prison. The former UFC light heavyweight champion will be arraigned
on Aug. 28 in Santa Ana, Calif. with bail set at $25,000.

Jackson is accused of sideswiping and causing damage to two
vehicles after he drove up on the curb with his raised Ford pick-up
truck near State Route-55 and 19th St., according to a press
release from the O.C. District Attorney’s Office.

Holly Griggs, 38, of Huntington Beach, was reportedly one of the
victims sideswiped by Jackson in her 2007 Escalade vehicle. She has
since miscarried a 16-week pregnancy.

Jackson has not been charged for Griggs’ loss beyond the
aforementioned allegations.

“We reviewed all the medical records and spoke with the victim’s
physician and the evidence showed that the loss of the fetus was
not related to the crash,” said Farrah Emami, spokesperson for the
Orange County District Attorney’s Office.

The 30-year-old Jackson allegedly fled the initial collision scene
and was flagged by a police officer, who observed the fighter
driving on a flat tire and talking on his cell phone. Jackson
refused the officer’s requests to pull over and continued to weave
in and out of traffic, colliding with another vehicle, said the
release.

Jackson then allegedly swerved onto the curb of the wrong side of
the street into oncoming traffic, “narrowly missing a bus stop and
forcing several pedestrians at the bus stop to run out of the way
to avoid being hit.”

Jackson ran multiple lights and nearly struck a pedestrian and two
bicyclists as several marked police vehicles joined the pursuit,
according to the release. Jackson was eventually taken into custody
in Newport Beach.

The outspoken Jackson, who shot to celebrity status with his
first-round knockout of light heavyweight king Chuck
Liddell(Pictures) at UFC 71 in May 2007, was placed
under a 72-hour mental observation at a local hospital the day
following his arrest and was later released.

The Memphis native made his first public appearance at a pre-fight
press conference for UFC 87 at the Mall of America in Minneapolis
on Aug 7. Flanked by UFC President Dana White, a lighthearted
Jackson was cheered on by an enthusiastic audience.

White blamed Jackson’s behavior on sleep deprivation, starvation,
and “delirium” following the fighter’s five-round decision title
loss to Forrest
Griffin(Pictures) at UFC 86 a week before the
incident.

Rumors have recently swirled that Jackson (28-7) will return to the
Octagon as early as December to face Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (16-3)
in a rematch of their April 2005 tilt in Pride Fighting
Championships, where the Brazilian earned a first-round knockout
over Jackson.